Above: Photograph by Asha Agnish

Jeff Chen moved his floral-design atelier, Flora, from Soho to 85 Franklin Street because he needed more room—his new 900-square-foot space is double the old one, founded in 2003. Perhaps even more important, however, was that “Soho has a lot of tourists, and they only want to look. We had to hire someone just to answer their questions.” Chen (right) chose Tribeca because he loves the neighborhood and how low-key it is, and because it’s still downtown—many of his clients are in the area.

Although Franklin Street definitely has less foot traffic than Thompson does, the interior of the new Flora (most recently Zaba, a
children’s boutique) might provoke its own share of gawkers. The tall, narrow room is bisected by an extraordinary slatted screen, made with 70 handcrafted pine panels, that seems to undulate like the spine of a massive prehistoric creature. “I told the architect, David Hu, that I wanted it to look like a gallery, but it also had to function as a working space,” said Chen. “His idea was to divide it with the screen.” Having a quiet seating area was crucial. “I’ve learned that customers really want to talk about what they’re dreaming of—what they want for their wedding, perhaps—so I needed a space where we could discuss it.” Hu also took advantage of the 15-foot-tall ceilings, tucking a business office upstairs, behind the screen.

The rest of the interior is understated, the better to show off Flora’s designs. When I asked Chen how he describes his aesthetic, he said, “We keep arrangements really simple, really sculptural.” (And designer Alicia Benjamin piped up: “You often say, ‘Urban chic.”) The wall of flowers on one side of the room proves that he is drawn to the exotic. “I use a lot of leaf, a lot of folding and scale, to make arrangements interesting. We want to deliver excitement.” Clients include Thompson Hotels, including Tribeca’s own Smyth, Armani Casa, and Bisazza, and Chen was tickled to have delivered flowers the previous day to a certain pop diva who lives nearby. Flora also sells individual flowers, and will even give them away. “Every child who comes in gets a flower,” he said.

Despite the fact that I visited on Chen’s birthday—he’s 36 and lives on the Upper West Side—he gave me a gift: a gorgeous arrangement (above) of tightly packed protea, ornamental cucumis, and scabious. It was packaged in a box that folds up into handles—an elegant solution that also provides a bit of drama. (Chen collaborated with a designer on all the packaging, which is adaptable to various vase sizes.) “It’s exciting to surprise people,” he said.

Flora is at 85 Franklin St., between Church and Broadway; 212-274-1887. At florany.com, you can browse possible designs, or of course Flora will create something unique. Delivered arrangements start at $65; hand-tied arrangements and arrangements for walk-in customers start at $45.